Friday, February 25, 2011

The Longest Solo Marathon Swims In The World

Stroke after stroke, kilometer after kilometer, hour after hour, marathon swimmers have the unique physiological and psychological ability to go for a long time, day or night, warm or cold, rough or calm, marine life or not.

But in the case of ultra-marathon swimmers, they also have the remarkable ability to swim DAY after DAY. Like the example of Antonio Abertondo, a 1964 International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame inductee shown above, these swimmers go on for what is seemingly forever.

Antonio swam many marathon swims in his native Argentina from 1942 to 1961. In 1946, he successfully crossed the Rio de la Plata in over 29 hours and a Strait of Gibraltar crossing in 1950. He completed five English Channel crossing (in 1950, 1951 and 1954), but his legacy is best embodied by his incredible 43 hour 10 minute two-way crossing of the English Channel in 1961. With only four minutes to rest onshore, Antonio nearly swam non-stop for two straight days.

Other ultra-marathon swimmers have followed courageously and steadily in Antonio's wake. The longest solo marathon swims in the world as researched by The Daily News of Open Water Swimming include the following:

Lake:1. Vicki Keith, an International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame inductee, completed a 64-mile (104K) double-crossing of Lake Ontario in August 1987 in 56 hours and 10 minutes.2. Abdel-Latif Abo-Heif of Egypt, an International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame inductee, completed a 60-mile (96.5K) professional solo lake race across Lake Michigan on August 23-24, 1963 during the Jim Moran's Lake Michigan Swim Challenge from Chicago, Illinois to Benton Harbor-St. Joseph, Michigan in 34 hours and 38 minutes.3. Ted Erikson, an International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame inductee, finished the same 60-mile (96.5K) swim in 37 hours and 31 minutes.4. Yuko Matsuzaki, a former professional marathon swimmer from Japan and an International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame inductee, completed a 51.5-mile (83K) solo swim in 33 hours and 25 minutes in Lake Cane in Orlando, Florida on September 13th, 2008. 5. Yuko Matsuzaki completed a 50.9-mile (82K) solo swim in 29 hours and 55 minutes in Lake Cane in Orlando, Florida in August 2007.6. Greta Andersen, an International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame inductee, finished a 31-hour, 50-mile (80.4K) professional solo lake race from Chicago, Illinois to Kenosha, Wisconsin, the 1962 version of the Jim Moran's Lake Michigan Swim Challenge. 7. Ted Erikson also finished that 1962 50-mile (80.4) Lake Michigan race in 35 hours and 45 minutes. 8. Vicki Keith completed a 80.2K all-butterfly crossing of Lake Ontario in 63 hours and 40 minutes in 2005.

Ocean: 1. Susie Maroney (shown above), an International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame inductee, swam 111.8 miles (180K) from Cuba to Florida in May, 1997 (done in a shark cage and wetsuit)2. Diana Nyad, an International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame inductee, swam 102.5 miles (165K) from North Bimini, Bahamas to Juno Beach, Florida in 19723. Diana Nyad swam 42 hours non-stop in a 1978 attempt from Cuba to Florida after swimming 99.7 miles (160K) but withdrew before reaching her goal in Cuba.4. Susie Maroney swam 99.4 miles (160K) from Jamaica to Cuba in September, 1999 (done in a shark cage and wetsuit)5. Jon Erikson swam 63 miles (101K) in a 38 hour 27 minute three-way crossing of the English Channel in August, 19816. Philip Rush swam 63 miles (101K) in a 28 hour 21 minute three-way crossing of the English Channel in August, 19877. Alison Streeter swam 63 miles (101K) in a 34 hour 40 minute three-way crossing of the English Channel in 19908. Susie Maroney swam 58 miles (93.6K) from Mexico to Cuba in June, 1998 in 38 hours and 33 minutes (a recognized Guinness world record)9. Diana Nyad swam 50 miles (80.4K) along the Great Barrier Reef in Australia

The Other Shore

The Other Shore follows world record holder and legendary swimmer Diana Nyad as she comes out of a thirty-year retirement to re-attempt an elusive dream: swimming 103 miles non-stop from Cuba to Florida without the use of a shark cage. Her past and present collide in her obsession with a feat that nobody has ever accomplished. At the edge of The Devil’s Triangle, tropical storms, sharks, venomous jellyfish, and one of the strongest ocean currents in the world, all prove to be life-threatening realities. Timothy Wheeler’s documentary brings Diana Nyad’s extraordinary adventure to life as Diana sets out to prove that will and determination are all you need to make the unimaginable possible.LEARN MORE...

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This, for example, was the purpose of the traditional farmers almanacs. It enabled farmers to determine as accurately as possible which crops to plant for the greatest harvests in a given year.

But the farmers almanac was just one example among many. There are, of course, many different kinds of almanacs.

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